KOCHI: The Kochi Corporation’s efforts seem to have paid off, at last! No major waterlogging was reported in the city after the heavy rainfall on Sunday. Even the usual hot spots, MG Road and the KSRTC bus stand, were spared. Regular cleaning of drains and monitoring appear to have had the desired result. Attributing the achievement to the teamwork of the technical and non-technical staff, Babu Abdul Khader, secretary of Kochi Corporation, said two teams from the engineering and health departments were formed to tackle the issue.
“Both teams worked around the clock, especially in those areas where waterlogging has been reported repeatedly. Drains in and around MG Road, near the KSRTC bus stand, Vyttila, and Banerjee Road were cleaned,” said Abdul Khader.
During the drive, drains that had not been opened and cleared for the past 14 years were cleaned. “It has been decided to continue with drainage cleaning throughout the year. Shortly, waterlogging will be history in Kochi if everything goes to plan,” he added.
The civic body has devised a systematic plan for waste management in the city. “A team has been assigned to clean drains in all 74 divisions of the corporation. On Monday, the work was carried out in Division 62,” a health department official said.
The corporation also plans to purchase three equipment — jetting-cum-suction machines with recyclers, robotic excavators and amphibians — to clean the drains throughout the year. The proposal will be presented to the council for approval.
“Following the visit to Chennai Corporation, we learned that there are these equipment to clean small drains and big canals,” said Abdul Khader. “The jetting-cum-suction machine with recyclers will be useful to clean small outlets without opening slabs. Robotic excavators can be deployed to clean canals that are at least 2.2 metres wide, and amphibians can be used to clean canals such as Mullaserry and Perandoor. The total cost of these machines will be around `30 crore. The annual maintenance cost will rise with one-fourth of the outlay going towards purchasing the new equipment,” he added.
Meanwhile, eateries and other commercial and residential units that were issued a warning for discharging waste into the drains along MG Road have set up oil filters. “The strict action against eateries has created a huge impact and has helped to keep the drains free from clogging,” Abdul Khader said.